Using Resources Through Your Local Libraries
When researching your family you may become aware of books or journal
articles that could provide answers to your genealogy. What do you do if
they are not available in your immediate area and how do you know if they
are in a city you are planning to visit?
Check first to eliminate the possibility of a copy in your local
library. You may be surprised; many people do not realize that Riley
County Genealogical Society, although concentrating on Kansas, has
material on other states and countries. Kansans, other than Native
Americans, had to emigrate from somewhere; and the route can
originate from some unexpected locations.
Some databases like
www.ancestry.com, www.rootsweb.com, www.mygenealogy.com, and
www.heritagequest.com, may give you references to pursue. The free version
(available on the internet) won’t be as helpful as the subscription
(expanded) version.
Some subscription
databases are available at the Riley County Genealogical Library.
Access to a lot more databases and information is waiting for you; you may
need some guidance from the library assistant to insure you make the most
of your usage.
One database that is
especially valuable to the researcher is PERSI (Periodical Source Index);
it can be accessed through www.ancestry.com ‘s expanded version. It is a
remarkable project from the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne,
Indiana. This library is only exceeded in prestige by the Family History
Library in Salt Lake City as a US genealogical library. All United States
genealogical journals are indexed, providing the necessary information to
submit to a wonderful program called interlibrary loan, available at most
public libraries. Although a complete journal cannot be loaned, a
photocopy of the article may be obtained.
Manhattan Public Library
has First Search, a database locating books and magazines throughout the
United States. You will be asked to indicate a minimum amount you are
willing to pay; this is usually to cover copying and mailing and is set by
the lending institution. In a few weeks you may have that article on your
family published in A Lot of Buncombe (county in NC). When submitting a
request at the reference desk, be sure to give as much information as
possible.
Old Kansas newspapers on
microfilm can be obtained from the Kansas State Historical Library. Check
internet sites of any state archive and determine what microfilm records
(e.g. marriage, deeds, wills) you can order for in house use at. Manhattan
Public Library. You can search for your great, great, grandparents’
marriage record in Dickson County, TN, while sitting in the library in
Manhattan, Kansas.
The same type records can
be obtained many times from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City
through the local Family History Center (at the Church of Latter Day
Saints, 2819 Marlatt). Many large and medium -sized libraries have partial
or complete catalogs online; check the Family History Library Catalog at
www.familysearch.org in your own home or from the computer at the local
Family History Center. Although books cannot be loaned, many are available
on microforms and can be ordered for your leisurely perusal. Photocopies
can be requested and dates for return give more than adequate time for
examination.
All the libraries have capable
personnel who can guide you through interlibrary loans. The public library
does not have PERSI, but you can access it through the Riley County
Genealogical Society or the Family History Center. A librarian
at the public library can tell you if the book on Pennsylvania Dutch
Ancestry is in the Mid-Continent Public Library in Independence, by glancing at the reference
databases. For those serious researchers, there are avenues that connect
libraries and expand collections beyond city and state borders.
Rebecca Rose
Tennessee Civil War Veterans Questionnaires
We have lived
long enough to see how history can be revised, romantized, and sometimes
distorted through the lens of time and Hollywood. Getting back to
primary sources such as Tennessee Civil War Veterans Questionnaires
gives a realistic, first hand account of life during a turbulent time in
our nation’s history. Responses were sought in 1914, 1915 and again
1920, from those still living who had served in Tennessee units; finally
published in1985, the queries reveal a cross section of human experience
from all social classes. Personal reminisces; insights into
politics, education, class relationships, social mobility, and daily life
from soldiers fighting on both sides, were solicited.
The 1650 responses flesh out our
ancestors and their humanity and are fascinating to dip into by the
genealogist or history buff. You don’t have to have an ancestor in the
index to appreciate the humanity, the war time adversities and peacetime
drudgery, which are- related matter of factly and sometimes humorously in
these 5 volumes in the Riley County Genealogical Society Library at 2005
Claflin. Visit their web site at
www.rileycgs.com.
Rebecca Rose
Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Index
Where were you in ’62? That ‘s
1862 and I am speaking genetically. If your forebearers were participants
in the United States Civil War; the National Park Service, in league with
the Federation of Genealogical Societies and the Genealogical Society of
Utah (and various other organizations), have made your ancestors a lot
easier to flesh out. They have been amassing for years a
computerized database of the 5.4 million men (on both sides), using index
material from the National Records Administration. To date they have 4.2
million of those names and histories of the 4,000 Union and Confederate units in
which your great, great grandfather served; and can be accessed from the
comfort of your home or local library.
You can discover his regiment’s
name, his rank at enlistment and his rank at disposition, the side which
claimed his allegiance and the film number and roll number which can lead
to more detailed information on his service record. The Soldiers and
Sailors Index is based on data from original archival documents.
Information on Medal of Honor winners, burials in cemeteries managed by
National Park Service, and records of prisoners of war are part of the
future for this amazing project. This is not just an exciting development
for genealogists and history buffs, but a method to enable children
to identify their families’ part in the progression of history.
Investigate the site at www.itd.nps.gov/cwss
and you might join the ranks of
the fascinated
Rebecca Rose
Who Cares About the 1930 Census?
Who cares about the 1930 Federal
census? That was 72 years ago, and by the way, why has it taken so
long to see the census? The laws of privacy have prevented public
access until April 1, 2002. To the family historian it is a gold
mine of information. People spend hours looking at census microfilm
to find the exact address of the house where “Grandpa” lived in a small
town they barely remember visiting as a child. Did “Aunt Mary” just talk
funny or was she an immigrant and what was her native country? Did
“cousin Fred” really work in a coal mine in Kansas? Sometimes
surprises are found in the relationships of persons living in the
household. The person thought to be an elderly housekeeper was
really the mother-in-law of the head of the family. Babies born after
April 1, 1930 were not included. People confined in hospitals,
schools, jails, etc. were counted. Family history is an interesting
hobby if you like mysteries and puzzles.
Some questions asked in the 1930
census: names, ages and relationship of those living in the home, street
address, color or race, age at first marriage, value of home and owned or
rented, occupation, place of birth, place of birth of father and mother,
attended school or college, if the home had a radio and which specific war
a man fought in. It is a search that will involve looking at hand
written names on rolls of microfilm. The 1930 Kansas census has not
been indexed. Only ten southern states were indexed as a depression
era project of the Work Projects Administration, WPA. Just finding
the correct roll of microfilm to read is the first stumbling block.
Enumeration district, abbreviated as ED is the area assigned to one
enumerator in one census period, four to six weeks in 1930. In rural
areas it is not as difficult narrowing the search for the correct ED, but
in urban areas it is a challenge. Riley County Genealogical Society
at 2005 Claflin Road has on order the entire state of Kansas 1930 federal
census. It will be available to the public for research. Volunteers are on
duty to help patrons.
Rebecca Rose
Genealogical Gemstones from the Graveyard
Want to know the history of the
local community or your family? Just take a stroll through the
cemetery. Start your trip by determining the hours of operation,
rules, or permission required to visit the cemetery. Next, prepare
for the trip with a camera, notebook paper, pencil, bug spray, and
appropriate clothing. An extraordinary history lesson is about to
begin!
For a genealogist, the cemetery
and tombstones supply vital information such as an ancestor’s spouse,
death, birth, and even marriage date. While the dates are most likely
accurate, be cautious, as another family member may have supplied the
information for the tombstone. Markers and symbols on the tombstones
provide further clues as to the individual’s trade, social organizations,
religion, or war service. Organizations such as the Daughters of the
American Revolution, Masons, Woodsman of the World, and Grand Army of the
Republic offer insights into an ancestor life and give opportunities for
further research. Artwork or sayings inscribed on the stone help
make the ancestor more real. For a genealogist, the tombstone takes
the ancestor from just being a name on paper to a person who lived,
struggled, and was loved.
A quick stroll through any
cemetery will quickly give you a feel for the history of the town such as
the nationalities of the individuals who settled the area. A survey
of the dates of the cemetery’s headstones creates a time line such as when
the first settlers arrived and tragic events in the history of the town
such as cholera epidemics. Memorials within the cemetery such as to
the Civil War veterans or those who fought in the World Wars contribute to
your understanding of the community.
Cemeteries today play a vital role
in the community. Often the tombstone may be the only place where
information about an individual is recorded. The beauty of the
natural peaceful setting as well as artistry of the stones draw people in
to walk and reflect. A sense of community is developed as neighbors
meet each other as they walk in the cemetery or maintain graves of loved
ones or friends. Whether researching a family ancestor, taking a
rejuvenating walk, or connecting with your town’s history, cemeteries are
for the living. Gemstones of community and family connections are
waiting to be discovered.
Rebecca Rose
Clues from the Great Beyond
Stumped for information on an
elusive ancestor? Believe it or not the answer to your genealogy
mystery might come from beyond the grave via tombstones that is.
While information such as the name, birth, and death date of an individual
is obvious, clues to other family members and genealogical information are
also available. One of my luckier finds was to wander through a
small family graveyard in
Missouri and stumble upon an
ancestor’s tombstone from the 1860’s that listed the birthplace of the
great great grandparents. With a place to now start researching, the
family line quickly filled in.
Another answer came from beyond
the grave when I found a distant relative buried next to his
grandfather. They shared the same fenced-in plot but not the same
surname. By a little further digging I found out my ancestor had
purchased the plot for his small son and his father-in-law. I now
had a name for a maternal line that had stumped me for many years.
Genealogical, fraternal, and
religious organization insignia give the researcher new resources to
try. A Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR, marker on an
ancestor’s grave might take a family lineage back to the 1700’s.
Finally, the tombstone may be the only recorded data on a particular
individual. A great great grandfather who moved just prior to his
death did not show up anywhere else except on the tombstone next to his
daughter. Be a sleuth by checking out neighboring graves, related
family surnames, emblems such as G.A.R., or inscriptions. You too
might be surprised by the information provided from the grave.
Terry Healy
Sketch Book of Riley County, Kansas: “The Blue Ribbon County”
Picture this. The time is 1881, a
time 120 years removed from our own; the place, Riley County, Kansas, a
thriving town on the high road to prosperity and the twentieth century.
Poyntz Avenue and
environs in Manhattan can provide products from E. B. Purcell’s dry goods
store ranging from butter and eggs to boots and crockery and services such
as tailor, photographer, barber (tonsorial parlor with $.25 baths
available in the rear) and carriage manufacturers.
A real treasure of a book Sketch
Book of Riley County Kansas: The “Blue Ribbon County (Come and See Us) was
published by the Nationalist, a Weekly Republican Newspaper in 1881,
located in Manhattan. No aspects of life in this area are less than
congenial and superior in the boundless boosterism of a recruitment
booklet. The vegetables and cattle are all superior in health and quality,
the business men eager to serve and unfailingly honest and agreeable and
people are “above average of the inhabitants of western towns in respect
to morality and religion.” The Nationalist and its editor had reason to
feel pride in their county, which had recently been awarded $1000 and
named “Blue Ribbon County” by the Western National Fair Association for
making the fullest and best general display of its hometown products at
its Fair held at the Bismark Fair Grounds. Apparently the superiority of
the display was unequaled and a hot topic among fairgoers.
If you are fortunate enough to
have an ancestor living in the area at this time, you have a wonderful
insight into all aspects of everyday life and commerce. The business
directory of this work not only describes services offered, but describes
interiors, comments on personalities (always in positive terms), offers a
biographical sketch of proprietors and their rise in business as well as
visions of their future (all in superlative terms). In the vein of
Everyday Life in Elizabethan Times and Everyday Life in Bible Times, it
could be named Everyday Life in
Riley County, 1881. In the
Manhattan
tonsorial parlor “Everything is
clean and neat and the smell which is peculiar to many barber shops and
disagreeable to the sensitive nerves of a refined person” is absent in
this establishment. Was the writer referring to the pungent smell of
products or something more human? A mystery lost to the ages, but
interesting speculations arise.
The American House (located at 1st
and Poyntz in
Manhattan) aspired to be an
unpretentious boarding establishment catering to those of good character
and strictly enforcing temperance. Leave your antics and spirits at home
if you plan a stay in this “first class hotel suitable for laboring
people, farmers, mechanics who are of limited means.” All aspects of
life are dealt with including the weather with temperature averages for
months for August (77.24F) and average monthly rainfall of 8.51 inches in
1880. (“Kansas has the reputation of being a droughty country, and it is
true that we have a dry atmosphere with a smaller annual rainfall than
some other sections, but there is not as much difference as most people
imagine…Our greatest rainfall seems to come when it is most needed.”) It
even rains on cue!
There are more fascinating facts
in this pamphlet covering everything imaginable to inform and lure
potential Kansans to riches in the West. And if, the Appendix advises,
you do not like
Riley County, there are good
agricultural lands in surrounding counties.
Kansas as a state is not neglected and
townships are briefly discussed, describing businesses, churches and the
number of houses. Interesting historical facts are slipped in: the drought
and grasshopper raid of 1874-75, severity of the winter of 1856-57,
perceptions of the railroad and barge system, and pioneering
practicalities. If you were not seduced by the optimism and opportunity,
maybe you might be frightened into making such a move by the specter of
homicides, suicides and disease on your eastern doorstep. “ Every year
thousands of eastern people commit suicide and scores of thousands are
killed by their friends. It is well-known that the climate of the eastern
states is almost certain to develop the disease (tuberculoisis) of all who
have a tendency to it; and recovery from it there is impossible.”
Those so inclined to the dreaded disease are urged to moves to a
healthier climate which strengthens, rather than weakens, the lungs before
the disease “germinates.”
An Every Name Index to Riley
County, Kansas:“The Blue Ribbon County” was prepared by members of the
Riley County Genealogical Society whose indexing efforts are ongoing and
untiring for documents pertaining to
Riley County and Manhattan. Family
names of pioneers have survived in street names (Winne, Himes), but most
of the surnames are not familiar ones in 2002. If you are related to some
of the 1881 community in this area, this booklet will be valuable in
recreating your ancestor’s life and times. If the language and life of the
era are your interest, you may find it more fascinating than a historical
novel. What shines through the promotional purpose of the book and the
abundance of facts is the energy and enthusiasm with which they were
regarding the future. Whether this was the optimism of an age or an editor
is open for speculation. This booklet and others like it are available at
the Riley County Genealogical Library in Manhattan.
Rebecca Rose
Newspaper Clippings from Pottawatomie County
In our research to find the
pertinent dates that record major events in our ancestors’ lives, we may
encounter and often overlook the rich fabric that is the ebb and flow of
daily lives. These hidden treasures deserve a second glance to give us a
feeling for the people and place them in the context of their
time.
One such source in the Riley
County Genealogical Library is Newspapers Clippings Containing
Information About People and Events in
Pottawatomie County, Kansas
(1861-1905). When
your mind needs a rest from researching, spend a few minutes with the two
volume set, compiled by Pat Hook and indexed by Kathy Olson and Margaret
Parker, to dip into what was important and newsworthy in the nineteenth
century community.
There are the expected obituaries
and marriage announcements (with complete listings of gifts received and
from whom), national and local politics (i.e., pros and cons of the bond
proposition bringing the Kansas Pacific Railroad to town), crop
projections and the like. But there are also a lot of amusing entries that
hint at a deeper story than we have access to. “Mr. Eli Nolle has
succumbed to the inevitable and taken unto himself a better half, Miss
Rosa Elbert, an estimable young lady.” (Sept. 29, 1887)
Speculative items such as “Frank
Webber and William Blonke talk of going to Nebraska, but it is only talk,
we guess” (Sept. 29, 1887); and even rumors (“that a certain young lady on
the creek is awfully disappointed.” –Pleasant Run, July 16,1896) must have
fueled conversation and created some embarrassment. Maybe Nelson Fawk had
been the target of such a blind item when he wrote the columnist
“Pussy Cat” (Jan. 23, 1892) the following irate response: “If you
ever allude to me again in The Alliance News, I’ll skin
you alive and make whipcrackers of your pelt.( Signed ) –Yours in
Earnest.
Idle conversations were relayed as
well as harvesting talk. On the occasion of his 73rd birthday,
Mr. Cooper “who lives in single blessedness was heard shaving 10
years off his age to impress two widows (Dec 29, 1887). You may find
some reprimands thinly veiled as news: “Last Saturday evening a
family of Italians, three bears, a goat, and a monkey camped near the Rock
Creek Bridge and news spread like the ‘grip’ among the boys. Sunday
morning ‘sauasion’ proved ineducacious sic in the face of such attractions
and many of our young people went to bed Sabbath night with empty pockets
and a guilty conscience.”(Alliance News-Jan. 25, 1892). Readers are
asked to consider if “coddling our girls (will) prepare them for the
responsibilities of life?” (Jan.23, 1892.
You can’t help but smile at some
of the news items. They certainly put a human personality on those stiff
formal portraits of our ancestors. I’m amazed they could push the
news as far as they did to incorporate rumors, speculations, and personal
commentary right along with a description of the brown silk of a bridal
gown or the damaging hailstorm last week. Even if your family was
not in the area during the 1886-1911 period, the entries are colorful,
entertaining and insightful.
Appeared in FYI (Newsletter of the Riley County
Genealogical Society, Vol.4, No. 1, May 2002)
Afro-American Community in Manhattan, KS-1865-1940
What is the genesis of the vital Afro-American
community in Manhattan? How did it develop an identity and a sense of
community and how did it cope with existing racial stratifications? Nupur
Chaudhuri has written Afro-American Community in Manhattan, KS:1865-1940
researching their role, using factual sources such as
contemporary newspapers and interviews with 23 elderly Afro- American
citizens. Funded by a grant from Kansas Committee on Humanities, she deals
with religious, social, occupational and educational aspects and traces
the population from the Federal Census of 1860 (showing no black
population in Manhattan) to 1940 figures.
Lots of little-known facts will surprise and enlighten
you. For instance: By 1875 the black population had risen to almost 6% as
people moved west looking for a better life and by 1880 census, they
represented 15% of the total population. Manhattan grew so rapidly, adding
more white than non-white that by 1940, Afro-Americans dropped to 2%
percent of the town. What could have been a dry study of life is actually
is a very readable, fascinating contribution to local history.
Chaudhuri’s emphasis
is on the “average citizens in their private and public sphere” and how
they shaped events at local, regional and state levels. The cultural
expansion was centered in the church. In interviews with seniors the
history of churches and its importance in establishing their personal
identity, is dominant in their memories. If your family was an early
settler, his/her name might be found in the index prepared by Richard
Phillips, Janeice Crosson, Wann Towers and Muriel Wilson.
Even if your ancestor is
not mentioned by name, you can gain great appreciation for life during
these years in the black community and how they, lived, worked and
celebrated. One senior remembered Emancipation Day being a special
celebration on August 3; festivities disappeared in the 1930’s and seemed
to be absorbed into the 4th of July holiday. Quotes from oral
history are especially interesting; nothing like hearing impressions from
someone who was there.
Race relations seemed to be
fairly good, but existing in racial stratifications. Prohibitions of the
times seem strange to us in 2002. Despite all these things, the sense of
unity and community in raising families was a strong, binding element. The
first segregation of schools (as a separate unit) occurred in 1903 and was
not generally looked upon favorably by the black community. In 1904
Douglas school opened with 60 students. Primary grades were held there,
but after 6th grade, students were integrated into junior and
senior schools. In high school assemblies, black students were required to
sit in the back and few had any incentive to complete their education if
they could not see how it might translate into jobs other than unskilled
labor.
Interactions between the
black and white community were limited and restrictions were placed on the
use of institutions such as parks, swimming pools and theaters. The 29
page study is documented and supplemented with population tables and
statistics on employment. A valuable source for genealogists with
local Afro-American ancestry, local history buffs and a real tool in a
living history program, this and other resource books about your family
and mine can be found at the Riley County Genealogical
Society.
Rebecca Rose
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